How To Make Your Own CBD Oil In 6 Easy Steps

CBD oil sitting on the edge of a garden bed

Want to make your own CBD oil at home? Making your own homemade CBD oil is a great way to create a concentrated and versatile ingredient that you can incorporate into any number of recipes. While homemade CBD oil may not be as strong as some CBD oil tinctures you can find online, it’s a great way to use any spare CBD hemp flower or trim that you may have saved up.

In this post, we’ll cover,

What materials you’ll need
The steps you’ll take when you make your own oil
And, how best to store it

Sunset Lake CBD sells small buds that are a great choice if you want to do your own at-home infusion. See them here.

What Is CBD Oil?

CBD oil is a non-intoxicating oil that’s been infused with cannabidiol-rich hemp flower or hemp extract.

At Sunset Lake CBD, we craft our CBD oil tinctures with full-spectrum hemp extract and use organic MCT oil as our carrier. The result is an easy-to-dose CBD oil that you can take directly under your tongue or put into your favorite foods and drinks.

Is It The Same As Hemp Oil?

CBD oil and hemp oil are not substitutes for each other. CBD oil contains cannabidiol, an active cannabinoid currently being studied for its ability to manage

Anxiety
Sleep
Inflammation
Epilepsy
Appetite

Hemp oil, sometimes called hemp seed oil, contains little to no CBD. Hemp oil is made by cold pressing hemp seeds into a culinary oil that’s rich in omega acids, beneficial fats, and vitamins B and D.

What are the Benefits of Making Your Own CBD Oil?

You might want to make your own CBD oil for a few reasons:

Price

Ready-to-use CBD oil that you can buy online may not agree with your budget. If you don’t want to spend too much money, making homemade infusions and edibles is a great option for you.

Versatility

Homemade CBD infusions can be the foundation ingredient for topical salves, ointments, edibles, and can even make a great addition to your pet’s food (just make sure you know how to properly dose your pet.)

Dosage

When you make your own CBD oil at home, you’re in control of how strong the final product is. If you want to make a low-strength CBD oil that you can spoon into Fido’s food next time there’s a thunderstorm you can. Or, if you’re trying to make knockout homemade CBD edibles, you’re making an extra-strength CBD oil is your first step.

Both are possible with the help of a handy CBD edible calculator and proper certificates of analysis. See our certificates of analysis here.

Using Decarboxylated Hemp Flower

In order to properly infuse CBD into your oil of choice, you’ll first need to decarboxylate your CBD flower. Decarboxylation is the process in which ‘inactive’ cannabinoids like CBDa, THCa, and CBGa become active and ready for consumption.

Note: hemp decarboxylation is a very aromatic process and should only be done in private spaces or with the consent of your cohabitors.

What You’ll Need to Make Your Own CBD Oil

Decarboxylated CBD flower

The amount you’ll want should be determined via an infusion calculator like the one found here. You’ll want to ground up your decarboxylated flower before the infusion to increase the surface area of the flower. This will help facilitate a more complete infusion.

Your oil of choice

The best oil for infusion will depend on how you’ll want to use your homemade CBD oil. If you plan on making homemade edibles, consider using raw coconut oil. If you want your CBD oil to remain a liquid, consider using cold-pressed hemp seed or olive oil.

Double-boiler/ Crockpot

Depending on how fast you want to complete your infusion, you’ll want either a double boiler setup or a slow-cooking crockpot.

Cheesecloth

Cheesecloth is useful for straining your spent CBD flower from your infused oil.

Mason jar

You’ll want an airtight storage container for your finished product. Mason jars can ensure that your oil will last for some time in both your fridge or your freezer.

Glass bowl & fine mesh strainer (optional)

Both of these tools are optional but will make for a less messy infusion.

How To Make Your Own CBD Oil

Patience may be the most important ingredient when you make your own CBD oil. The more time you invest into your infusion the better your final product will be.

Because you’ll be using heat to help with this infusion, you’ll want to avoid temperatures over 230F. Low temperatures will preserve the taste of your oil and prevent your cannabinoids from boiling off.

Instructions

If your CBD flower is not yet decarboxylated, grind it up into small pieces, spread evenly on a baking sheet, and place it in a preheated oven at 230F for 40 minutes. Make sure to use your hood vent fan if you have one.
If you’re using a double boiler setup, add water to the bottom pan and turn on your stovetop to medium. Once the water is warmed up add your oil of choice to the top pan and let it melt. If you’re using a crockpot, add your oil to the crockpot and bring it to temperature on low.
Add your decarboxylated CBD flower.
Stir the oil in your double boiler periodically for 30 to 60 minutes. If you are using a crockpot, you can extend this infusion over the course of several hours on its low setting.
When your infusion is complete, line the mouth of the mason jar or strainer with cheesecloth. If you have a glass bowl, now would be the time to break it out. Pour your oil through the cheesecloth into either your mason jar or strainer into your glass bowl. When all of your CBD flower is captured by the cheesecloth, you can twist it up and squeeze out the remaining oil. Note, that your hands will get greasy and the oil will be hot.
If you haven’t already, transfer your homemade CBD oil into your mason jar, or use it immediately.

How To Store Your CBD Oil

You’ve spent all this time on your infusion— don’t let your CBD oil lose potency because of improper storage.

Once you’ve gotten your oil into your mason jar, store it in a cool, dark place. Note that the shelf life of your CBD oil does not change after infusion. If you choose to infuse a new bottle of olive oil, for instance, you should plan on using it within 60 days of infusion.

You can also store your homemade CBD oil in the refrigerator or freezer to extend its shelf life and preserve its potency. If stored properly, your homemade CBD oil should maintain its CBD potency for up to 18 months.

How to Dose Your CBD Oil

Hopefully, you used an infusion calculator and your CBD flower’s certificate of analysis when you were planning out your infusion. If you’ve done that, you can go back and use that same infusion calculator to plan out your very own CBD edibles, topicals, or just to dose yourself properly with oil.

Making your own CBD oil is not only a cost-effective way to enjoy CBD, but it can also be fun. Once you get the hang of infusing, you can play with temperatures in order to emphasize other minor cannabinoids like CBN and CBG. However, if you just don’t have the time or kitchen space to conduct your own infusion, know that there are some affordable CBD oil options out there. Many can be found here at Sunset Lake CBD.

Sources:

Atalay S, Jarocka-Karpowicz I, Skrzydlewska E. Antioxidative and Anti-Inflammatory Properties of Cannabidiol. Antioxidants (Basel). 2019 Dec 25;9(1):21. doi: 10.3390/antiox9010021. PMID: 31881765; PMCID: PMC7023045.